Pakistan: US push on detainee 'counterproductive'

ISLAMABAD (AP) -- Any U.S. pressure on Islamabad to release an American held for shooting dead two Pakistanis will be "counterproductive," a senior government official said Saturday.

Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir issued the warning as the dispute between the two countries over the man's fate reached new levels, with U.S. officials threatening to take a variety of measures to get him freed.

The U.S. insists the American, Raymond Davis, is an embassy staffer who has diplomatic immunity and that he shot the two Pakistanis in self-defense when they tried to rob him at gunpoint in the eastern city of Lahore in late January.

Pakistani officials, fearful of a backlash in a population where anti-American fervor is widespread, have avoided verifying his diplomatic status and have referred the case to the courts. Police are pushing for murder charges against the 36-year-old Davis, a former U.S. Army Special Forces soldier.

U.S. officials have said they are considering several ways to display Washington's displeasure over the man's detention, which they say violates international agreements covering diplomatic ties.

Options include delaying a Washington meeting on the war in Afghanistan scheduled for later this month and slowing down visa processing for Pakistanis wanting to come to America.

Also on the table is the possibility of cutting back on military and educational training programs with the Pakistani armed forces and civilian educational, scientific, cultural and local and state government exchanges, said American officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because the case is before a court.

Pakistan is considered a key to U.S. success in neighboring Afghanistan, making it difficult for Washington to sever too many ties. At the same time, Pakistan relies on large amounts of U.S. aid and protection, but the government seems paralyzed in the face of outrage over the shootings, much of it driven by the media.

Bashir acknowledged that the Washington meetings will likely have to be rescheduled because of the Davis case. The sessions, to be held during the week of Feb. 20, would have included Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and senior Pakistani and Afghan diplomats.

He noted that the U.S. and Pakistan have a long history, and said it is "unthinkable" that one incident should strain the relationship. Still, he said, "Any U.S. pressure on the issue of Raymond Davis will be counterproductive."

The foreign secretary went on to say that if he ever did something "immoral and criminal," he wouldn't seek immunity. But when asked to answer directly whether Davis has diplomatic immunity, Bashir refused to do so, saying it would be wrong to comment since the matter was in the courts.

That Davis was carrying a gun was enough to attract suspicion in a country where U.S. drone strikes have killed scores of civilians and conspiracy theories abound about armed American mercenaries roaming the country.

A senior U.S. official has told The Associated Press that Davis was authorized by the United States to carry a weapon, but that it was a "gray area" whether Pakistani law permitted him to do so. The embassy will say only that he was a member of its "administrative and technical staff," which may include security officials.

Davis' next hearing is scheduled for Feb. 25.